As you may have read elsewhere, Boeing has had a few more problems with their 787 fleet, and having to ground the entire test fleet due to an onboard fire aboard a plane during test

The findings are out – and it’s not good news with Boeing have to develop “minor design changes” and updates to power distribution panels and system software.

Tests have been carried out in the labs, and are moving towards fixes on the ground, whilst it revises the planes to re-deploy the 787 test fleet into action. This will require FAA approval before they can take to the air again.

So yes, the 787 programme is grounded, and delayed again. Boeing state that “a revised 787 programme schedule is expected to be finalized in the next few weeks”.

Which is going to annoy ANA as they are first to fly the aircraft. However, Qatar are now reported to be annoyed, and Qatar airlines’s CEO going so far to say

“I was really taken aback by the (787) programme. I never expected a programme could be delayed so much with a company like Boeing, which has pride in its quality. They have very clearly failed,”

Ouch.

Considering the popularity of this frame, those are very harsh words indeed. Harsh words that has 60 aircraft in the balance (both in firm and options)

Can Airbus avoid a messup with the A350 frame now? I think not alas. The 787 is having a very troubled birth alas……

A blogger has had some intresting times blowing apart the fun that is the TSA at Seattle-Tacoma Airport.

Visit http://www.feminisnt.com/2010/my-experience-mocking-tsa-security-theater-at-seatac-as-a-nearly-naked-enfant-terrible/ (NSWF!!!!!)

Yes, it’s not safe for work. And another example of security theatre. But she has some classic lines…

The TSA wanted to feel me up or see what I look like without clothes.  I get it.  I’m a sex worker.  My main porn site gets about 3 million unique visitors a year, and clients pay $4 a minute to see me naked on my web cam, so the TSA’s interest in me came as no surprise.  Normally, I would charge for such a service, but this one was on the house.  Duty, country, sacrifice, patriotism, all that

Furry Girl/Feminisnt.com  (NSFW!!!!)

Well anything for a freebie in TSA land I guess. Heck. This is the agency that has Pizza consumers as part of it’s recruitment demographic.

Oh yes, she logs 30K a year. In Miles.

I’ll let you watch in the comfort of your own home and your own opinions, but yes – Security Theatre – at it’s best.


NSFW = Not Safe For Work. You have been warned!!!!!

The following is a bulk email sent to all Qantas Frequent Flyer Members – reproduced with just the text.

I am pleased to advise that Qantas will resume A380 services, commencing with an initial A380 service to London via Singapore on Saturday 27 November.

We have undertaken a rigorous inspection program in conjunction with Rolls Royce and Airbus to ensure the fleet is ready to return to service.

We always put safety first, and we continue to take a conservative approach to the reintroduction of the A380 fleet. So we will initially operate the A380 between Australia and the United Kingdom. As more A380s come into service, we will assess when and how best to deploy them.

I want to assure you that we have full confidence in our A380 aircraft fleet, and will not fly any individual aircraft unless we are completely sure that it is safe to do so.

Qantas has six A380s in its fleet, and is scheduled to take delivery of two new A380s before the end of this year, and a further two next year. With our fleet of more than 250 aircraft, we are able to maintain a full international and domestic network, so you can book and fly with us with confidence.

I want to thank you for your loyalty and patience. On behalf of all of us at Qantas we deeply regret any inconvenience. We look forward to welcoming you warmly when next you fly.

ALAN JOYCE
Qantas Chief Executive Officer

GhettoIFE.com will continue to monitor as Qantas continues to bring it’s A380 back online and into service.

Well it’s taken long enough, but Qantas has annoucned that it’s slowly completing it’s safetey checks and are planing for their A380 aircraft to reenter service.

Services will commence on the 27th November – over 3 weeks since the engine on QF32 decided to uncontain itself and had to return to Singapore, grounding the fleet.

Qantas will be restricting the use of the fleet as aircraft come back into service into what it calls “routes that requires the use of maximum engine thrust” – on their own orders, not those of Airbus or Rolls Royce.

To quote

“The decision to restore A380 services follows an intensive Trent 900 engine inspection programme carried out in close consultation with Rolls-Royce and Airbus. Together with the engine and aircraft manufacturers and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), Qantas is now satisfied that it can begin reintroducing A380s to its international network progressively,” 

“In line with its conservative approach to operational safety, Qantas is voluntarily suspending A380 services on routes that regularly require use of maximum certified engine thrust and will do so until further operational experience is gained, or possible additional changes are made to engines. This is an operational decision by Qantas and pilots still have access to maximum certified thrust if they require it during flight. It is not a manufacturer’s directive,” says the airline.

Expect slow filtering of aircraft and short substitutions. QF31 will be the first, operating from Sydney to London via Singapore. This will be “the” A380 as Qantas decides how best to deploy them, and where to deploy them

Qantas are currently down to 5 A380′s currently (the 6th being the unit stuck at Singapore), however an additional 2 aircraft are expected towards the end of the year. How these are deployed will be the important question – or if the engines will be donated to other aircraft to keep the rest of the fleet going.

Qantas’s approach to safety has be visually applauded, but there have been a series of gaffs over the past weeks (with another contained engine failure, and a failure of a service from EZE where it had to turn back). 

Hopefully, this will mark the end of this chapter, and we’ll hear more positive A380 news.

Well SkyTeam is continuing apace with it’s “quality” signings, with negoitation in place with Gaurdia Indonesia for it to join the alliace during the next year to 18 months.

SkyTeam has been expanding recently, with Vietnam Airlines onboard this year, and China Airlines of Taiwan joinign too.

The joining is these memembers SkyTeam will hope meet demands of customers. Other members in Asia include Korean Air and China Southern.

This will add another 30 destinations to the SkyTeam map, but you can’t help by feeling apart from the very core of SkyTeam (Delta and AirFrance-KLM) there seems to be an alliance of “not great quality” airlines….

For those of you in Diamond Club land wanting to see what the future hold, head to http://www.businesstraveller.com/news/bmi-update where their team has been interviewing Wolfgang Prock-Schauer about some of the changes coming to BMI.

I’ll be publishing my analysis a bit later on this evening – but there are little titbits of information for those who are worried about the migration to Miles and More.

It’s confirmed that Air Asia X will serve Paris Orly to Kuala Lumpur Low Cost International Airport

The service will commence on the 14th February 2011, with fare from November 22 (inculding a launch fare with taxes by the bucket load)

Scheduldes are loaded

Winter to Kuala Lumpur

Day       Flight No  Depart ORY Arrive KUL

Monday    D72015     17:10      12:50

Wednesday D72013     10:00      05:40

Thursday  D72015     17:10      12:50     

Sunday    D72013     10:00      05:40

Winter to Paris Orly

Day       Flight No  Depart KUL Arrive ORY

Monday    D72014     09:00      15:40

Wednesday D72012     01:05      07:45

Thursday  D72014     09:00      15:40

Sunday    D72012     01:05      07:45

Flights will operate from Paris Olry to KLIA LCC Terminal, with a Airbus A340 aircraft. There are variances in the timetable for the summer periods, so keep a close eye out.

If the service goes full time (7 days a week), there could be a price to pay elsewhere in the Air Asia X network.  Considering how “happy” they are with the British due to taxation and other fun, for Orly to go 7 days a week, STN
KUL could suffer…. 

With thanks to Lucky, Saturday Night Live take a close look of what can happen if you refuse to go through the Nude-O-Scope/Millimetre Wave Scanner this Thanksgiving weekend

Alas and sadly, very close to the truth…

It’s Sunday again, so it must be time for some more Airplane p0rn.

This week, it’s a Singapore Airlines Boeing 777-300ER preparing for the long scretch to Hong Kong and Singapore.

More of course, next week!

Time to put that seat of yours in the upright position and put your tray tables away as JAL present their safety video.

More next week!